Child life specialists are members of the allied health sector, and work with children who are undergoing medical treatment. The child life specialist helps the children and families understand what is being done and will guide the children through the procedures. Their work is very important, especially since even a brief stint at the hospital can be traumatic for a young child. Basic medical career training can be obtained through any accredited online university, as well as some child life and child development courses. Once you've completed your undergraduate degree, you'll want to specialize in child development as part of your graduate degree.
If you’re interested in children’s healthcare and want to provide quality care for children, use these tips to become a child life specialist.
- Undergraduate Training: You need to have a background in psychology if you want to work as a child life specialist. Remember, you will not be doing any actual medical procedures. Instead, you will be assisting the nurses, surgeons and other doctors as they deal with the children that are in your care. Because of this, you need to be trained on how the human mind works. This training will give you insights and a deeper understanding of how the human mind works, and will allow you to read a child’s mind and help him overcome his fears. If you do not want to get an undergraduate degree in psychology, you can also earn a degree in child development or sociology. To become a Certified Child Life Professional, you will be required to take ten classes in the following areas: child life, child development, psychology, counseling, sociology, human development, family development, family dynamics, therapeutic recreation, and expressive therapies. Other courses that count are courses in death & dying, biomedical ethics, and cultural diversity. There are also some universities that are beginning to offer child life courses and degrees that can further prepare you for child life specialist jobs.
- Training: After graduation, you should spend at least a year working in fields that are related to both psychology and child care. Some of the common work options that you have at this point are to work in parks, children’s centers, camps and schools for young children. This will give you the chance to interact with children, and will train you how to deal with very young children. Remember, this training period is important since a lot of adults do not actually know how to deal with and understand a child’s mind. In order to become a Certified Child Life Professional, you must complete 480 hours of child life clinical experience that is supervised by a Certified Child Life Specialist.
- Volunteer Work: After getting your training in institutions that cater to young children, you should also try doing some volunteer work. The volunteer work is necessary since it will provide you with the opportunity to talk with other people in the field and will allow you to establish your network with other professionals, companies and institutions where you can later work as a child life specialist. Also, the amount of time that you volunteer will be valuable when you start to create your resume. Most employers will only deal with child life specialists who have prior volunteer work.
- Certification: After finishing your year or more of training and volunteer work, you can finally apply for a licensure or certification. Check with the state requirements to see what kind of accreditation you need to have. If possible, it’s always best to work under the title of a certified child life specialist. You are likely to find more jobs since you are certified. Check out the Child Life Council, a credentialing organization for Child Life Professionals.
The need for Child Life Specialists is rapidly growing. It is expected to have greater than average job growth throughout the next decade. Child Life Specialists average an annual income of $60,000. Remember that the field of Children’s Life Specialists is constantly growing and evolving. Because of this, you need to make sure that you keep yourself up to date with the latest developments in the field.